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Camp Williams Double Droptine Buck Poached

SALT LAKE CITY — An Duchesne County man has been charged with shooting a deer in an area closed to hunting.

Gunshots were reported at Camp Williams the night of Oct. 24, 2011. A military sergeant responded to the gunshots and found a headless mule deer carcass, according to charges filed Wednesday in the 3rd District Court.

The sergeant believed the carcass was that of a mule deer nicknamed "the Rabbi" because of its "very large and uniquely shaped antlers" that measured 37 inches, making it a trophy deer, according to prosecutors. The antlers were valued at $8,000.

Nearly a month later, authorities received an anonymous tip that a set of antlers resembling those of the Rabbi were at a Sandy taxidermy shop. Officers questioned the taxidermist, confirmed the antlers were from the Rabbi, and determined who had brought in the deer head, the charges state.

Stephen Dick Rueckert, 46, of Altamont, was questioned and told investigators he knew he was not allowed to hunt at Camp Williams, the charges state.

Wow. Ya I saw some pics of this same deer a few weeks ago somewhere. Dam shame he was poached. A deer like that you would think everyone would know he was there so why would some fool think he could get away with that!

Yes poaching is just bad news. It hits even closer to home when it gets violent. Below was a story of the farmer/friend who leased some farm property that my Aunt owned that happened in 2005 in Kansas. Our friend lived and they caught the guy but it's just plain stinks.

A Clay County farmer who previously had complained to officials about poachers was stabbed late Sunday by deer poachers he confronted on a rural road. The farmer, Marvin Macy, 67, rural Longford, was in serious condition Monday at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita. No arrests had been made by late Monday, Clay County Sheriff Chuck Dunn said. Officials were looking for three men in a red, 1980s or early ’90s Ford pickup truck with a white dog box in the back. The pickup had a Kansas license tag. The alleged poachers left behind a deer — illegally killed with a shotgun and its head severed.

Rob Ladner, regional supervisor for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, said Macy’s wife called the natural resource officer assigned to Clay County at about 6 p.m. Sunday, after her husband heard shots fired near their home. Macy went to investigate, planning to meet the state officer. Dunn said Macy confronted two men on a rural road in the Longford area and saw a third man in the pickup truck. During that confrontation, Macy was stabbed in the abdomen and side and cut on the face.

One of the alleged poachers jumped in Macy’s car and the other got into the pickup truck. Both vehicles sped away. Macy, bleeding from his wounds, walked about a quarter mile to an old farmstead where he had equipment stored. He drove a farm truck to his nearby home, then was flown from his house to the Wichita hospital.

Lost ’em in the dust Ladner said the natural resource officer was headed to meet Macy at 6:18 p.m. when he saw Macy’s car headed away from his house, following a red pickup truck. The officer turned around and followed the car and truck, but he lost sight of them in the dust. He stopped about two miles from the stabbing site when he saw Macy’s car, abandoned in the road.

“Don’t ask me why they drove the car two miles away and then abandoned it,” Dunn said. Dunn said officers talked to another farmer who saw the poachers within a couple of miles of the stabbing site earlier Sunday afternoon.

“He stopped to see what they were doing, and they said they were just riding around,” Dunn said. Ladner said the poachers left behind a male deer with antlers that had an inside span of more than 17 inches — large enough to make the poaching a felony crime. Ladner didn’t know whether the buck had a large enough rack to be considered a trophy.

Late October through early December is the prime season for deer poaching because it’s rutting season, and deer are more vulnerable and because the deer haven’t yet shed their antlers, Ladner said. “It used to be, 25 years ago, that the poachers were after the meat,” Ladner said. “Now, the antler market is a very lucrative business.” He said a top-end rack could sell for as much as $20,000.

But, “that’s not your typical rack,” Ladner said. “That’s very top end.” Do not approach them Ladner said the department often gets calls from landowners about poachers. Department officials ask that witnesses get as much information as they can — a description of the people involved, a description of their vehicle and a tag number, if possible, and a description of what they’re doing.

“We have to know what the violation is — whether they’re shooting at night with a spotlight, or shooting out of season,” Ladner said.
It’s helpful to call 911 as quickly as possible, Ladner said, so a natural resource officer or sheriff’s deputy can catch the poachers.
But Ladner said citizens should never confront poachers. As demonstrated by Macy’s injuries, confronting poachers can be dangerous.
“These people already are committing illegal acts,” Ladner said. “If they’re willing to do those kinds of things openly, then they are probably the kind of people that I would consider dangerous.”